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Public Holidays in Fiji reflect the country's cultural diversity. Each major religion in Fiji has a public holiday dedicated to it. Also Fiji's major cities and towns hold annual carnivals, commonly called festivals, which are usually named for something relevant to the city or town, such as the Sugar Festival in Lautoka, as Lautoka's largest and most historically important industry is sugar production.

Public Holidays that fall on the weekend are usually moved to either the Friday of the preceding week or the Monday of the following week. This includes religious holidays as well, though in essence they are celebrated on the actual day.

List of important festivals and days in Fiji

Date Festival Notes
January 1 New Year's Day Celebrations can continue for a week, or even a month, in some areas. It is common practice in Fiji to beat drums and shower one another with water. Fireworks and an annual street party take place in the heart of Suva, the nation's capital, to welcome the new year. This represents one of the largest new-year celebrations in the South Pacific.[citation needed]
February/March Holi Hindu "Festival of Colors" (not a public holiday).
March/April Ram Naumi Hindu celebration of the birth of Lord Rama (not a public holiday).
March/April Easter Major Christian festival; the Friday (Good Friday) and the Sunday (Easter Sunday) are both official public holidays. There is also a Public Holiday on Easter Monday, the Monday following Easter Sunday.
March/April Palm Sunday Also celebrated as Children's Sunday by Fiji's Methodists (not a public holiday).
May Ratu Sir Lala Sukuna Day The celebrations in honor of Fiji's first modern statesman actually begin a week early. It is almost always celebrated on a Friday. This was formerly a public holiday, but the military-backed interim government abolished it following the military coup of 2006.
May 4 National Youth Day Public Holiday celebrating the Youth of Fiji.
June 11 Queen's Birthday Official birthday of Queen Elizabeth II, former Queen of Fiji, still recognized by the chiefs as the Tui Viti, or Paramount Chief of Fiji.
Sometime in the first half of the year, and based on the Islamic and lunar calendars Eid al-Fitr Muslim festival celebrating after Ramadhan. The public holiday is not on the actual day of celebration due to the unpredictability of the moon's appearance that signals the day.
August Bula Festival Celebrated in Nadi
August Hisbiscus Carnival/ Festival Celebrated in Suva
September Sugar Festival Celebrated in Lautoka
August Friendly North Festival Celebrated in Labasa
September Coral Coast Festival Celebrated in Sigatoka
October 10 Fiji Day The anniversary of both Fiji's cession to the United Kingdom in 1874 and attainment of independence in 1970. The week leading up to Fiji Day, Fiji Week, features seven days of religious and cultural ceremonies celebrating the country's diversity.
October/November Diwali Hindu "Festival of Lights", honours Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth and prosperity. The public holiday is a day of colour and celebration amongst all of Fiji's races and creeds - not in its religious sense but for its festive and cultural aspects. Hindus in Fiji usually open their homes to other families to share in the traditional sweets and foods of Diwali in Fiji.
November 6 Music BlueSky Fiji "Music Festival" charters a tropical island for an international music festival.[1]
December 26 Boxing Day The day after Christmas.

Variable dates

References

  1. ^ Fiji Music Festival
  2. ^ "2020 Holiday Calendar Fiji | Fiji 2020 Holidays". theprintcalendar.com. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Holi 2020 - Calendar Date". www.calendardate.com. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  4. ^ "RAM NAVAMI-RAM NAVAMI 2020-RAM NAVAMI DATE-WHEN IS RAM NAVMI". Color Festival Holi, The Festival of Colors. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  5. ^ a b c d "Palm Sunday 2020 - Calendar-12.com". www.calendar-12.com. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  6. ^ a b c d e "Easter 2025 - Calendar Date". www.calendardate.com. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  7. ^ "Fiji Public Holidays 2021". PublicHolidays.asia. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  8. ^ "Fiji Public Holidays 2022". PublicHolidays.asia. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  9. ^ "Holidays and observances in Fiji in 2023". www.timeanddate.com. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  10. ^ "Printable Fiji Calendar 2024 with Holidays [Public Holidays]". calendarwiki.com. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
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